village won't allow me

Ok folks. This morning, I contacted the village just to inquire about the second water line. It's because, our sewer is billed against water usage. I hate it.

Anyways, he asked me why I would like and told him that I want to have an irrigation system. He told me that I'm not allowed to put it myself. It's against the Illinois law. He told me that I need to hire someone who is licensed. However, I'm more comfortable doing it myself plus with the help I will be getting from this forum. And also, I would be able to save labor cost.

I can't speak to Illinois laws, it does seem a bit restrictive, but you have to follow the local laws. It would seem reasonable to allow a homeowner to install the system but to require inspection before it could be used. The subject of water charges for yard usage has been discussed before, and it seems there are many ways it is handled by different authorities. In my area, the meter is read every two months. When water is being used for irrigation, the city uses the meter reading taken in the dead of winter as a base rate upon which the sewer charge is levied. That means in the summer, while I have to pay for the water I use, I do not pay sewage on the amount of water used above that base rate. It's still costly, but the water is clean and in good supply whenever I want it. My backflow preventer has to be re-certified annually by a licensed technician.

Actually, it is most likely your local village or town that sets the laws. They can make more strict regulations than the state if they want to. You need to check with the code enforcement agency in your village. If there is none in the village, then your county would have the authority.